Star Mag Writer Publishes Celebrity Thriller

What happens when a dogged newspaper reporter uncovers startling new facts about the decades-old murder of a gorgeous Hollywood starlet and links them to the gruesome slayings of other celebrities?

That's the premise behind "Shooting for the Stars," the new thriller by tabloid newsman-turned-bestselling author, R.G. Belsky.

"I write it like you write a tabloid news story. Fast!" Belsky said Thursday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on Newsmax TV.

"Shooting for the Stars" brings back hardboiled New York City newspaper reporter, who Belsky first introduced in his bestselling book, "The Kennedy Connection."

This time, Malloy is pulled into the closed-case murder of Hollywood starlet Laura Marlowe, shot dead 30 years earlier by a crazed fan who then kills himself. It's ruled a murder-suicide and the beauty's death fades into history.

But Malloy's digging bares long-buried secrets that put him on trail of a new serial killer. As the bodies pile up, Malloy races to unmask the maniac, but first he must learn what really happened to Laura Marlowe.

"The book is about celebrity crime and it's about media, which are two of my favorite topics. I found that writing about celebrity crime to me seemed to be a great topic for a mystery because the stories are so fascinating that I've covered in real life," Belsky said.

"The premise is a little bit based on a John Lennon type of murder … [but] what if that wasn't the way it really happened? What if there's more going on? Malloy links this to a series of other celebrity murders and it becomes clear to him that somebody is targeting celebrities."

"The great thing about writing a novel is you can then say like, 'Oh I don't have to follow the facts, I can make stuff up.' That's kind of what I do here. I try to bring a lot of my celebrity background into the book and also a lot of my media background about what goes on in a newsroom … but it's even more interesting because it's fiction."

One of the celebrities Belsky has covered over the years is Donald Trump — the frontrunner for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination — beginning with the billionaire developer's explosive affair with Marla Maples and divorce from Ivana Trump.

"He was really a huge celebrity story at the time … There was a huge confrontation on the ski slopes of Aspen. That was my first big story in Star magazine and it was huge," Belsky said. "That led to of course the famous New York Post headline, 'Best Sex I Ever Had,' which I guess if you're going to wind up in The New York Post is probably about as good a thing somebody can say about you."

Belsky said he's surprised by Trump's astounding success on the campaign trail and chalks it up to "the chord he's struck with people."

And he says The Donald is the exact same personality he knew all those years ago.